Paris – Eutelsat Communications and Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) have announced the execution of a strategic agreement for commercial cooperation at the 75° East orbital location. Within the framework of this agreement Eutelsat is co-locating its Eurobird 4 satellite at 75° East with the ABS-1 and ABS-1A satellites operated by ABS. This redeployment will inject an additional eight Ku-band transponders to 75° East to address markets in the Middle East, central Asia and Russia. Renamed W75/ABS-1B, Eutelsat’s satellite will also provide possible redundancy to customers until the arrival of ABS-2, which is expected in 2012. Michel de Rosen, CEO of Eutelsat commented: “This strategic agreement with ABS underscores once again Eutelsat’s commitment to developing partnerships with satellite operators that enable valuable in-orbit resources to be fully optimised for the benefit of our community of users. We are delighted to initiate commercial activity at 75° East through this new collaboration with ABS, and look forward to building a strong and lasting relationship with an operator of reference in the Asian continent.” Said Tom Choi, CEO of ABS: “W75/ABS-1B will bring increased Ku-band capacity to 75° East for the Middle East and CIS regions where the supply of Ku-band capacity is scarce and in high demand. This strategic cooperation will greatly benefit the customers of both Eutelsat and ABS who have been seeking expansion capacity in these regions. We will also bring forward the additional Ku-band capacity which will be provided on ABS-2 planned for 2012, two and a half years early. Our customers will be able to jump start their expansion plans in 2009 instead of having to wait until 2012.”